"Titan..."
"I'LL MAKE SURE YOU PAY!!!" Jaden roared at Titan, his voice is filled with rage.
Meanwhile, Titan only threw his head back and laughed. "AHAHAHAHA!!! What are you gonna do, kid!? You don't even have anything left on your field! Your monsters are gone, your defenses are gone! ALL YOU HAVE IS DESPAIR! AHAHAHAHA!!!"
"Also, I'll end my turn!" Titan added, but his mouth was grinning like a madman.
{Titan hands: 1, Titan's field: 5 Monster, 1 Continous spell.}
{Grapha, Dragon Overlord of Dark World: ATK: 3900 -> 3200}
{Reign Beaux, Overking of Dark World: ATK: 3700 -> 3000}
{Goldd, Wu-Lord of Dark World: ATK: 3000 -> 2300}
{Sillva, Warlord of Dark World: ATK: 3000 -> 2300}
{Lucent, Netherworld of Dark World: ATK: 3100 ->2400}
"It's a shame that {Dark World Archives} effect is once per turn..." Titan said with a crooked grin, but it then turned into a confident sneer. "But that doesn't matter when I've still got 3900 Life Points left! No matter what monster you summon, your next turn will be your last! HAHAHAHAHAHA!"
The chamber was just filled with Titan manic laughter, as Behind Jaden, the spectators were gritting their teeth in anger.
Alexis' hands were clenched tightly over her chest, her nails digging into her palms. "Horrible... that's just horrible...!" she whispered. Lovely, standing beside her, gently placed a hand on Alexis' shoulder.
Syrus trembled beside them, fists shaking. "Winged Kuriboh's sacrifice…"
He swallowed hard, then shouted at the top of his lungs, "WILL NOT GO IN VAIN!! GO JAY, AND WIN THIS SHADOW DUEL!!"
Mash however, was silent, but his eyes was that of a calm storm.
"Jaden."
The name alone was enough to pull Jaden's attention. He turned toward Mash, still breathing hard from anger and grief. But, he knew that whatever Mash was about to say, is important.
"I'll give you one piece of information regarding Grapha's effect in this Overlord form," Mash explained in a serious tone as his eyes flick toward the towering black dragon.
"It has an effect that change your cards effect into 'Your opponent discard a card.' Basically corrupting one of your card effect and changing it into him discarding a card."
"So he can corrupt my card effects, huh? Got it." Then, with that same unshakable grin, Jaden nodded. "Thanks for the heads-up, Mash. I'll make sure to make use of that info!"
He gripped the top of his deck tightly as he drew a card with a flourish. "DRAW!!"
The card slid out cleanly between his fingers, Jaden examine's the card and his eyes lit up. "Alright... this might just work!"
Across the field, Titan's expression twisted into irritation. His grin faltered as suspicion crept in. [Who the hell is this kid…?] he thought. [How does he know about my card's effect? This Overlord form isn't even listed in KaibaCorp's or Industrial Illusions' database of millions of cards… so how the hell could he possibly—]
"Tch… Little insect." He cut the thought short, glaring at Mash with venom. "It doesn't matter what kind of information you give him. Your friend is still doomed! He'll join his little spirit in the Shadow Realm the moment it's my turn!"
"Heh, spoken like a true villain NPC," Mash smirks, crossing his arms. "Don't you know that one of Jaden's specialty is comebacks? There is no turn left for you now... Titan!"
Titan scoffed, "Hmph! Empty words!"
[Because Titan unlike me... still allows Jaden to play his cards, while I shutdown any single chance for him to play in an instant. Because that's how you win against Jaden, Titan.]
Mash's lips curved just slightly into a smirk. [You still leave him a chance. And that's all Jaden needs to turn everything around.]
"Then, how about we play this first to start my turn, {E-Emergency Call}!"Jaden declared, sliding the card into his Duel Disk. The holographic projection of the card appeared beside him "This lets me add one Elemental HERO monster from my Deck straight to my hand!"
"Hmph!" Titan sneered, his lips curling into a feral grin. "Then I'll activate Grapha's effect!" As Titan said this, Grapha then release a jagged bolt of Black and Yellow lightning at the spell card, corrupting it.
"Like your friend said," Titan grinned, his voice dripping with smug satisfaction, "Grapha changes the effect of any Spell, Trap, or Monster effect into 'Your opponent discards one card!' So instead of adding a HERO—I'll be discarding one instead!"
He drew out a card from his hand with a flair. "And I choose to discard {Gren, Tactician of Dark World}!"
Titan declared, as he slipped a card in his Duel Disk discard pile. "Then, because I discarded Gren because of a card effect... he shall destroy a spell or trap on the field, which will be your {Skyscraper} field spell!"
In the middle of the field, appear a Purple humanoid fiend with a really big forehead, wearing a green emerald cloak and holding a tome. Then he opened the book and a bright purple light flashes from it and destroying the nearby tall building, turning it back into a stone chamber.
"AHAHAHAHAHAHA!!" Titan's laughter echoed through the chamber. "No more Skyscraper, Jaden! No more attack boost! Without it, your puny HEROES are just powerless insects waiting to be crushed beneath Grapha's claws! YOU'RE DONE!"
"Done...?" Jaden repeated with a smirk. "You really think so?"
Titan's grin faltered slightly as Jaden lifted a new card between his fingers. "I still have one card left up my sleeve, Titan! Which is {Elemental HERO Bubbleman}!"
"If Bubbleman is the only card in my hand," Jaden continued, "I can Special Summon him to the field! So I'll summon him in defense position!" Jaden then place a card on his Duel Disk.
From the blue light, a sleek, aquatic HERO clad in a chrome-blue suit and a flowing white cape landed beside Jaden, striking a confident pose as he blow bubbles around himself from the bubble gun in his wrist.
"And if this card is summoned while I have no cards in hand or field except Bubbleman, I can draw 2 cards!" Jaden then Immediately drew 2 cards.
"Two cards!? What good will that do!?" Titan barked with arrogance. "You'd need a miracle to even win this duel!"
"Yeah," Jaden said with a grin. "A miracle is exactly what I need… and exactly what I've got!"
"And so, I'll play {Miracle Fusion}!" Jaden slammed another card onto his Duel Disk.
"WHAT!?" Titan's eyes widened. "But you have no cards left in your hand, and only Bubbleman on your field!"
"That's the beauty of Miracle Fusion!" Jaden answered. "It effects lets me Fusion Summon an Elemental HERO fusion monster by banishing materials from my field or graveyard!"
Titan face was literally about to snap in half.
"So I'll fuse my {Elemental HERO Flame Wingman} with {Elemental HERO Sparkman}!"
"What!? Sparkman!? When did he even go to the Graveyard!?" Syrus questioned from the stands.
"Probably from when Titan used {Hand Destruction} earlier," Mash replied calmly. "Heh, how ironic."
"O~hohohohoho!" Lovely chimed in with a devilish laugh. "The card that Titan used to gain advantage is the very thing that seals his fate~!"
A vortex appeared again above Jaden. Flame Wingman and Sparkman jumps into that vortex to fuse.
"Go! And show your shining new form! {Elemental HERO Shining Flare Wingman}!" Jaden shouted, as a new hero drop down from the vortex in a burst of light.
Flame Wingman landed on the field gracefully, but he was different. He now wears a glowing white armor and helmet with golden line patterns. and from his back spread two majestic wings, dazzling, metallic, and gleaming like polished steel. His draconic arm is also substituted with a golden gauntlet in his forearm, perfect for punching the villains in front of him.
{Elemental HERO Shining Flare Wingman|8 Star|Light|Warrior/Fusion/Effect| ATK: 2500 DEF: 2100}
All the spectator behind Jaden can't help but awe at the Hero and also narrow their eyes as he's glowing way too brightly.
"Whoa…" Alexis whispered, shielding her eyes from the glare. "He's… glowing even brighter than before…"
"Too bright..." Chumley groaned.
"Ho ho~!" Lovely can't help but let out a smug laugh "If you guys think this is bright, wait till they see the inside of my Bedroom~"
But Titan's reaction was far from impressed.
"HUH!???" Titan barked, throwing his arms wide in disbelief. "You summoned your stupid 'favorite hero' again, but now he's a really bright lamp with 2500 ATK?"
Titan smirks. "Even if you manage to destroy one of my weaker monsters, I still have 3900 Life Points! And after that, next turn Grapha will annihilate your fake hero and the rest of your life points with his 3200 ATK!"
"AHAHAHAHAHA! YOU HAVE NO CHANCE OF WINNING, BRAT!" Titan raised a hand toward Grapha. "AGAINST MY GRAPHA, YOUR HERO STANDS NO CHANCE!"
But Jaden only smiled, a confident smile that makes Titan nervous.
"Actually, Titan..." Jaden smirks. "Flare Wingman does stand a chance against your Dragon Overlord! Because of his effect!"
"What!?" Titan's eyes widened.
"Shining Flare Wingman gains 300 ATK for every Elemental HERO in my Graveyard! And right now, I've got Bladedge, Avian, Burstinatrix, and Necroshade! That's four HEROES, meaning he gains 1200 extra ATK!" Jaden explained with confidence.
The radiant warrior let out a roar as four spectral silhouettes Bladedge, Avian, Burstinatrix, and Necroshade appeared behind him. Then they merge with him which makes him stronger!
{Elemental HERO Flare Wingman: ATK: 2500 -> 3700}
"Wha—WHAT!? I–IMPOSSIBLE!" Titan stammered, stepping back as the floor trembled under Flare Wingman's rising power.
"Oh, we're not done yet!" Jaden shouted, holding up his final card. "To add a little more heat, I'll play {H - Heated Heart}! Which boost let's me boost Flare Wingman ATK by another 500!" Jaden declared, and Flare Wingman was engulfed in a fiery aura which boost his ATK.
{Elemental HERO Flare Wingman: ATK: 3700 -> 4200}
"FOUR THOUSAND TWO HUNDRED ATTACK!?" Syrus gasped, his voice trembling. "That's even higher than Grapha!"
Alexis clenched her fists. "He… he actually pulled it off…"
Mash only smirked from the sidelines, with the faintest glint of satisfaction in his eyes. "End it, Jaden."
Jaden turned toward him with a fierce grin. "For sure!" Jaden replied, as he then raise his arms. "Now go, Shining Flare Wingman! Attack Grapha with your shining flare fist!"
The radiant HERO launched into the air, his entire body engulfed in bright light. Grapha raised his claws and wings to defend himself—but the moment they collided, the entire arena shook from the impact. The fiend roared as Shining Flare Wingman's blazing punch tore through his chest clean.
The Dragon Overlord makes it last roar as it get's destroyed.
{Titan LP: 3900 -> 2900}
"No... NO! THIS IS- NO WAY THIS IS...!" Titan stumbled backward, also out of words.
"And now for Flare Wingman second effect! When he destroys a monster, you take damage equal to that monster's original ATK!" Jaden explained
"Now this is payback to what you did to my buddy, Titan!" Jaden then raise his arms towards Titan "END THIS DUEL WITH SHINING FLARE BURST!"
As Jaden ordered, Shining Flare Wingman shone brightly and released a burst of radiant fire that engulfed Titan in pure light.
"AAAAAAAAARGHHHHHHHHHHH!!! NOOOOOOOOOOOOO!!!"
Titan's Duel Disk exploded in a shower of sparks before he collapsed to the ground, unconscious.
{Titan LP: 2900 -> 0}
The oppressive darkness and barrier of the Shadow Duel began to fade, alongside the purple smog that was surrounding the arena.
The holograms began to vanish. Silence filled the chamber, then Jaden straightened, exhaled deeply, and turned toward his friends with a wide grin.
"Heh… Gotcha!" He threw up a victory sign with his fingers. "Told ya I'd win this duel! And man, what a rush!"
"JAYYY!!!"Syrus sprinted across the arena to Jaden. "Are you okay!? That beam nearly vaporized you!" His voice filled with panic.
Jaden chuckled weakly and waved a hand. "Don't worry, Sy. Look here! I'm still intact, because of my buddy! I hope he rest in peace..."
Alexis stepped in, impressed. "Still, that was a really solid duel, Jaden. I'll give you that."
"Yeah!" Chumley added, pumping a fist. "You totally turned that thing around!"
As the group tension slowly eased, Mash approached from the sidelines with Lovely walking elegantly beside him, arms crossed and grinning.
"O ho ho ho ho~!" Lovely's laughter rang across the chamber. "I always knew you'd win, Jaden! Truly a performance worth a standing ovation!"
"Uh, Miss Labrynth," Syrus interjected nervously, "weren't you just repeating 'Jaden's doomed, Jaden's doomed' a few seconds ago—"
Before he could finish, Lovely's hand clamped tightly over his mouth. Her sharp smile didn't reach her eyes. "Oh, my dear Sy, I think you're misremembering~"
"Mmffh—mmph!" Syrus tried to protest, but she simply smiled at the sight.
Mash, meanwhile, noticed his right arm still wrapped in a faintly bloodstained bandage. "Jay, shouldn't you clean that cut up? You could get an infection in that cut, you know. But luckily, I brought some disinfectant with me."
"Seriously, dude? You carry that around? Are you some kind of nurse?" Jaden laughed, extending his arm. "Well, go ahead, man! Let's patch it up before it—"
But as he unraveled the bandage, the two of them froze. The wound was completely gone. Smooth skin. Not even a scar.
"What the—!? I swear it was still stinging a few minutes ago!" Jaden exclaimed.
"Oh~ That's probably because you won the Shadow Duel, Jay." She gave a teasing smile as she stepped in. "In a shadow duel or game, when one of the player lost, they not only get sent to the shadow realm, but also give some of their life force to the winner and heals them on any injury. Think of it as a reward for surviving."
"Ohhh, neat!" Jaden exclaimed.
"Hm... but speaking of getting sent to the shadow realm..." Alexis crossed her arms, frowning. "Why is that guy body still there?"
Everyone turned toward Titan's collapsed form. His massive body still lay motionless on the ground, as there's no sign of him getting 'sent to the shadow realm'
Lovely throw her arms out. "Well, I don't know~! I'm not an expert in spooky ghost stuff, Sexy Lexy!"
"Don't call me that!" Alexis snapped.
Lovely grinned wider, and Mash quietly sighed beside her. The group burst into laughter, their tension melting away at last. For the first time since the duel began, the air felt lighter, almost normal again.
---
...
...
..
.
Drip
A faint drop of water echoes and Titan's eyes shot open.
But rather than waking in the chamber, he looks around as he is on top of an endless, black sea. Its surface perfectly still, reflecting a star-filled sky that seemed far too close.
He slowly rose to his feet, his reflection shimmering beneath him like liquid glass. "Where… am I?"
The realization hit him as he stared into the abyss. "The Shadow Realm…" he muttered. "So this is it, huh? Hmph. Kinda peaceful for something named so menacing."
"Of course it is," His voice barely faded when another soft, composed, and hauntingly familiar woman voice broke through the quiet. "This place isn't the so called Shadow realm..."
Titan turned sharply and froze in shocked.
The woman in front of him... was the same messy haired office lady who had handed him the Dark World Structure Deck that day.
"Y-you…" Titan stammered, stepping back. "You're the woman who gave me that deck! What are you doing here!?"
"Sigh... Please, don't call me 'woman'. I have a name too, you know..." She said as she made a slow, counterclockwise motion with her hand around her whole body, and the messy image peeled away like a page being edited.
In its place stood a tall, elegant figure with long jet-black hair, crimson eyes, and wearing a sharp black tuxedo with a crimson tie that glowed faintly against the dim starlight.
"W-what...!" Titan stepped back seeing the scene in front of him.
"Please..." She spoke in a cold tone. "Call me, The Editor."
Titan's throat tightened. "The… Editor?"
"Uhh... Okay... The Editor...." Titan awkwardly trying to start an coversation. "The name is Titan, and as you can see... I'm probably dead because of-"
"Tch!" She flicked her tongue which is enough to silence Titan. "Sigh... I already know what happened. You lost, your soul's stuck here, and you're about to start whining about dying. Blah, blah, blah." She exhaled sharply, as if already bored. "So let's skip the recap, shall we?"
"I'm here to offer you something… simple," she said, holding a card between two fingers. "A second chance."
"Second... chance?"
The editor then showed to Titan what the Duel Monster card in her hand...
It was {Grapha, Dragon Overlord of Dark World}. The boss monster Titan used in his Dark World deck.
"Tell me, Titan..." Her voice dropped lower, almost a whisper. "do you want revenge?"
The card pulsed once, faint aura of darkness flickering across its surface like a heartbeat.
Titan didn't answer at first. He looked down at the reflection of his broken pride staring back at him on the black water. Then slowly, a smile crept onto his face. It dark, hungry, and full of hate.
---
Back at the chamber, everyone was scattered looking at the ground.
Because they are searching for the cards that Jaden put on the floor, it was blown away because of the burst of wind from Grapha's beam.
"Ugh... this sucks..." Chumley groaned.
"Yeah! This is ridiculous!" Alexis muttered, her voice sharp with frustration as she crouched to sift through the rubble. "Can't Mash just give you a new one or something, Jaden?!"
"Hey, that is some really rare cards, Alexis!" Mash lied as easily as he breath. "I can't even give him a new ones because they are event cards! They are one of a kind! If they're gone, they're gone!"
"Oh! So they are rare cards, huh!? So why don't I know any of them!?" Alexis spun toward him, glaring.
"Hey... hey... Can you two, chill out..." Jaden said while searching on the dueling arena for the cards. "We just need to find one more... and we're out of here."
Jaden examined further, until he saw Sunrise card art sticking out from under Titan's arm. "Found it!" Jaden exclaimed, sliding the card free and holding it up triumphantly. "Elemental HERO Sunrise, safe and sound!" Relief washed over his face as he grinned at the others. "Alright, that's all of them. Let's get out of here and get some Z's-"
Then suddenly... a bright pulse of purple light come forth throughout the entire chamber. For some reason... the stone carving in the wall began to glow purple again.
"Huh?!" Mash's expression darkened. "What the hell is happening now!?"
"No way, darling…" Lovely's tone dropped. "Another Shadow Game… has just begun!"
"What!?" Alexis took a step back. "But that's impossible! Who even started it!?"
"I did…"
The voice came from behind Jaden
Everyone froze as they turned to the middle of the Arena.
Titan's body, which moments ago had been lifeless, suddenly rose up. His fingers twitched, his head snapped upward, and his eyes in the metal mask, now glowing with a sinister purple haze.
"Titan!?" Mash was surprised. "SHOULDN'T YOU BE DEAD!?"
"Heh. I've arisen from the dead... Mash... I've risen… from the depths of darkness itself! And this time...!" his voice broke into a roar "I'LL DRAG YOU ALL TO HELL WITH ME!"
Then a dark aura engulfed his body and the same purple fog appeared around Titan and the whole chamber.
Suddenly, behind Titan, a vortex of purple fog forms into a monstrous silhouette. Thunder rumbled, not from the sky, but from within the fog itself. Yellow and black lightning cracked through the haze as a colossal figure emerged, scales gleaming like polished obsidian.
The beast unfurled its four wings, each step of his four legs shakes the entire chamber like a mini earthquake. Its eyes burned with rage, and its body pulsing with malevolent dark energy.
The Grapha, Dragon Overlord roared a guttural, metallic sound that made the entire chamber quake and make the group close their ears.
Then Grapha's jaws opened wide, gathering a spiraling orb of black and yellow lightning. The sphere crackled violently, expanding until it filled the chamber with blinding light.
"DIEEEEEE!!!" Titan shouted, pointing at Jaden since he's the closest. "TURN HIM INTO DUST!!!"
And then, with an ear-splitting roar, the Dragon Overlord unleashed the beam straight at Jaden.
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Hey everyone, IG here!
Lucky for you guys, I'm starting to make each chapter faster and faster! Though, I'm hoping it doesn't wreck the quality so please point out any mistake I make when making ths and future chapters!
Anyway, Thanks for reading and I hope you enjoyed! Chiao!
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